Microsoft Windows Phone 7: 10 Ways to Make It a Success

News Analysis: As Microsoft prepares for the U.S. launch of Windows Phone 7, the company needs to consider ways in which it can ensure mobile success going forward.

With Windows Phone 7, Microsoft has laid down the gauntlet for
its competitors. The company has proved that it wants to provide consumers and
enterprise customers with a new-look operating system that delivers the same
kind of functionality it brought to the market with Windows Mobile. So far, the
company has been somewhat successful. In fact, recent reports suggest that
Windows Phone 7 is sold out in many areas around Europe.
Whether or not Microsoft can carry that success to the United
States is unknown at this point. The company
will have to overcome fierce competition from Apple and Google in the mobile
market. The onus will be on Microsoft to overcome those companies in the single
national market that might mean more to Windows Phone 7's success than any
other.

But luckily for Microsoft, there is a way for it to enjoy
success with Windows Phone 7. It will just take some time and a lot of
effort.

2. Keep pressing vendors
Ubiquity means something in the mobile market. The more
vendors that install Windows Phone 7 on their products, the better. Devices
from HTC, Samsung and others are a good
start, but Microsoft must go elsewhere to find vendors willing to run its
software. The more it can sign up, the more likely its operating system's
chances of thriving in the mobile space.3. Bring out more effective advertising Microsoft's
Windows Phone 7 advertising is somewhat suspect. When the company first
provided all the details on the software, it showed people using Windows Phone
7 devices while ignoring everything else going on around them. It looked more
like a critique of smartphone use in general rather than a comment on what
Windows Phone 7 can actually do to solve the problem. The result was a rather
weak argument for why consumers should buy Windows Phone 7 products. Along the
way, the enterprise gets left out altogether. Microsoft needs to improve its
marketing efforts-now.4. Get to work on true multitasking
Microsoft made it clear that full multitasking will not be
available on brand-new Windows Phone 7 devices. That is not a good thing for
Microsoft. Both Android and iOS have multitasking built-in. Although
multitasking works better on iOS than on Android, they both work quite well. In
order for Microsoft to be successful, it needs to bring full multitasking to
its software sooner rather than later.

Don Reisinger is a freelance technology columnist. He started writing about technology for Ziff-Davis' Gearlog.com. Since then, he has written extremely popular columns for CNET.com, Computerworld, InformationWeek, and others. He has appeared numerous times on national television to share his expertise with viewers. You can follow his every move at http://twitter.com/donreisinger.